“What’s painfully clear from the article is Santa Fe is not exempt from the Racism we see playing out across the country,” Gonzales wrote. “While the journey will be long and filled with disappointment we know to make progress in ending racism we have to start at home.”

Sanders is no stranger to wading into talk about race and the tensions between black residents and police officers.

This July, Sanders took part in a discussion on NPR and mentioned people being racist toward him while he is in uniform.

“So when I’m on a traffic stop, and I’m dealing with somebody who’s racist, and they go and, say they complain or something, it’s hard for me to deal with that and not be like well this person’s just a racist because you’re still—you’re talking to someone who just doesn’t get it because they don’t have to go through that,” he said. “So, to me, it’s the on-duty part where you have to remain professional. You just – you’re held to a higher standard, and, to me, that’s the hardest part is the racism on duty because you have no defenses, like, nobody that’s defending you.”

“To be frank, the misperceptions and vitriol directed towards law enforcement frightens me. I’m fully aware that not all or even most of you think that law enforcement is out to eliminate black men. But there is a loud minority who, along with elements in the media – particularly social media – is spreading a dangerous narrative about law enforcement. This only creates a greater rift between police departments and communities of color and will ultimately result in more misunderstandings and more loss of lives.”

Since then, Sanders has occasionally appeared in national outlets to speak about the issue of race and policing.

This includes recent appearances, after the Dallas shooting where a gunman shot 11 police officers, killing five.

Sanders appeared on CNN the day after the shooting and said he felt like he was on “both sides” noting that he is not in uniform, he is treated differently than while in uniform.

When asked if he feared police when not in uniform, he said he did.

“Yesterday, I forgot my wallet and I had my gun,” Sanders said. “And I was pretty nervous.”

Sanders noted it was “a different kind of day” because this was the day after the Dallas shooting and police may think someone walking up to ask a question is going to ambush them.

On NPR, Sanders said something similar.

“I’m a black man, and when I’m off duty, I look like these other black men that are getting killed on the news,” he said during the panel discussion.

The interviews came before the killing of three Baton Rouge police officers by a man from Missouri.

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Attack ads, political bottle tossing and recriminations have marked this year’s race to replace outgoing Gov. Susana Martinez, who is leaving office due to term limits. The campaign’s increasingly dark tone illustrates the state of play in politics here in New Mexico and across the nation.

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New Mexico’s 2nd Congressional District isn’t the safe territory it used to be for Republicans, according to election handicappers. Most experts have put the Republican stronghold in the “Likely Republican” category.

Santa Fe’s mayor has a message for the Trump administration after the Department of Justice floated the idea of arresting elected officials in charge of cities with “sanctuary policies”: You know where to find me. On Facebook Wednesday evening, Santa Fe Mayor Javier Gonzales linked to a Newsweek story about the controversial, and likely unconstitutional, idea.

Holtec International was in the news last month when the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission denied requests from some groups to hold an additional hearing over the company’s license to build an interim storage site in southeastern New Mexico to hold nuclear waste from commercial power plants.

Matthew Reichbach is the editor of the NM Political Report. The former founder and editor of the NM Telegram, Matthew was also a co-founder of New Mexico FBIHOP with his brother and one of the original hires at the groundbreaking website the New Mexico Independent. Matthew has covered events such as the Democratic National Convention and Netroots Nation and formerly published, “The Morning Word,” a daily political news summary for NM Telegram and the Santa Fe Reporter.
Matthew has appeared as a panelist for the Society of Professional Journalists’ New Mexico Chapter’s panel on covering New Mexico politics and the legislature.
A native New Mexican from Rio Rancho, Matthew’s family has been in New Mexico since the 1600s.